My Destiny
by waveringphoenix
Summary: Acantha never wanted to be a Pokemon trainer or champion. Now her father's decided for her, and with pokemon everywhere becoming feral, what is the girl supposed to do when it's put on her shaky shoulders to fix and do it all?


My Destiny

Acantha raised her head and glared at her father, who stood at the edge of the door, and spat at his feet. She turned ignoring his growl to respect her only parent, and beckoned her Umbreon. It was too late to argue with the man about not wanting to become a trainer, he wanted his goals to be met, and she shook her head before she became angry again. Her Umbreon, Doyle, followed her willingly, glaring heatedly at her father and barking out curses that made her lips twitch.

_"You should be in bed!"_ Doyle hissed through clenched teeth, the yips of Umbreon easily understandable after several years with the Pokémon.

Acantha shook her head and held her gray backpack strap in her fist. "It's just meant to be." She sighed, slowly, if she wasn't careful she would be hacking out blood soon. With a last glance back to her house at the edge of Cherrygrove she started walking to the Violet Gym. Though Professor Elm was in the opposite direction, and would most likely give her a trainer's license, she had no desire to come back through here. She hoped Violet would also have applications for Pokémon trainers. After all, not everyone could visit the esteemed professor of the region for a starter or to begin their Journey. She continued walking and ignored the Pokémon that sniffed at her and screeched above her head. She had no pokeballs yet and not evens a trainer id. She glanced at Umbreon worriedly; she barely had a few potions, thanks to her _generous_ father and she was not truly sure about the pokemon centers ideals on non-trainers. She knew that many pokemon centers rarely gave attention to none-trainers pokemon unless it was an emergency.

_"I'll be fine."_ Doyle patted her leg gently.

The fifteen year old felt her cheeks warm. Her pokemon knew how to read her so well she sometimes swore he had a psychic pokemon as a father. She grinned at him before continuing her walk. Trainers nearby called out for battles, little brats she had no desire to listen to so ignored them rather easily. Instead she focused on her trek. The two had barely walked far from town but she knew she had to get to Violet City soon, especially if she wanted any chance of gaining a gym badge before her father followed after her. She was not quite sure why he insisted that he would follow her, _Maybe it's because he want to see if I'm really getting badges,_ but he told her in a gravelly voice that could rival a Golem that he would.

The pokemon seemed to grow more confident as she ignored them, which made Doyle twitch his ears and glare at the pokemon that tried to follow them.

Acantha glanced down at Doyle and shook her head, smiling at him. She knew he was quite protective of her but he seemed even more determined with new pokemon around him. Not that she knew many of them, but the few weak ones around here; like the rattata that had sniffed her just a moment ago, and a few hoothoot sleeping in a huddle under a small tree, were common enough that even she knew them. A few sentret hid when she approached but she gave them nary a glance trying to remember the path that took her to Violet City. She had only taken it once when her father had not been so angry and resentful that he had almost become a workaholic and drunk. Her backpack held a map but she felt no need to take it out just yet, she was sure that the path that she walked on would take her to her destination. Or at least she felt it was fated enough anyway.

A rattata appeared in front of the duo, surprising both, and bared it's fangs at Doyle. Before Acantha could react, the rattata shot forward with inhuman speed.

Doyle tackled it viciously bearing his own fangs at the pokemon. He growled low in his throat, pure un-adultered dark energy seemed to seep from the umbreon's skin.

The purple rat screeched, raising its vivid red eyes at Doyle and Acantha before charging in this time to quick for the dark pokemon to dodge. Said Umbreon grunted in surprise, skidding back from the surprisingly powerful attack.

"Doyle!" Acantha started to step toward the pair of pokemon glaring banefully at each other.

Rattata turned toward Acantha and screeched, its red eyes glowing, and charged right at the soon-to-be trainer.

Doyle roared and shot forward but it was too late, the rat slammed into Acantha, throwing her to the ground and biting viciously into her arm.

Acantha screamed, her eyes wide, and trying to shake the rattata off of her arm but it just clamped its fangs harder until Doyle tackled it, hard. Acantha let out another horrible scream as skin from her forearm was teared off _but the rat was off and she could finally feel her bone not breaking but it was bleeding now, so much blood, but it was okay because the rat was off, but so much blood!_

"_Stop it, mistress!"_ Doyle patted Acantha lightly, _"Your heart is moving too fast!"_ He hissed between clenched fangs, and finally, when she still did not respond, slapped his trainer with a paw distracting her from hyperventilating.

Acantha looked up, eyes wide, at her first and only pokemon. "Did you just? Well…" She took a deep breath and stood up carefully, her eyes wandering toward the rat that was drooling blood, her piece of skin was gone and she felt slightly nauseas. _Did pokemon eat human flesh?_ She really had no desire to know. Shaking her head she held her left arm loosely against her side and tried not to get to panicky again, she could already feel the coughs rubbing against her throat—though she tried to suppress them. "Doyle, finish it, Pursuit!" Her words were soft but she held a hard glint in her eye.

Doyle growled, starting to walk before turning his gate into a quick run. The air around the dark pokemon grew darker and suddenly a pitch black Doyle was slamming into the rattata. Black tendrils spread out everywhere before dissipating and showing the rat pokemon unconscious and breathing shallowly. _"Dirty rat."_ He hissed at the downed pokemon and turned away from it.

Acantha dropped to the ground, rummaging through her bag for bandages. She pulled out a roll of rather old styled bandages and wrapped the white cloth around her forearm, wondering why her father had not updated his training supplies from his own days as a trainer.

_"Do you want me to kill it?"_ Doyle licked her now covered wound.

"Yes-No, don't kill it, I think. We should-" She frowned; she didn't exactly know what to do with the fainted pokemon. It had attacked her and eaten—she shivered in disgust, _no let's not think about that._ But it had hurt her and it would only be justice, in her mind, to kill the feral thing. "Can pokemon be feral?" She glanced at her pokemon but he gave her a one sided shrug. She didn't know either, all her father's pokemon were either released or dead from sickness—He never did care too much about them once her mother died. She spared a glance at the downed pokemon before turning away from it. "Let's go Doyle." She frowned and continued to walk, her arm itched with pain but she did her best to ignore the feeling.

The Journey after her first battle was rather long and tedious in Acantha's mind. They found out the first night that not protecting their pack was a bad idea; half of their stuff was on the floor, scattered, and some of the ration bars her father had given her were gone. She was just lucky that nothing else seemed to be tampered with. It was a hard morning and afternoon of walking. The sun beat on her so much that she had to take the more shady paths so she would not blister or otherwise with her pale, pale skin. Her black hair made it also unbearably humid but she didn't want to cut it, even if she knew it was rather irrational, and instead put it in a tight bun that at least relieved her neck from some of the heat. She returned her Umbreon midway through the afternoon when she noticed the Sun seemed to bother him the most. She wasn't truly surprised, he was a dark pokemon, and continued her trek.

The second night she was more careful with her pack and carefully hid it before going to sleep with Doyle by her side. The Umbreon scavenged in the night and she let him before going to sleep, if she noticed that he showed up in the middle of the night to lay next to her, she didn't react.

The next two days continued in the same fashion, they would walk in the early morning; before dawn's break and stop around ten. She would then return Doyle when it grew to sunny for him and carry on without his company, she felt quite awkward walking by herself even though she would see him once it grew less blistering. Acantha could not help it, she was so used to her pokemon's presence, and the coughing fits would start every time she returned Doyle, but she didn't tell him. Nor did he comment when he reappeared later in the evening and see her hand stained with blood. The two ignored any trainer calling for a battle, and grew rather quiet when someone persisted. Instead the two found themselves, dirty and tired, at the entrance to Violet City, _Finally here._


End file.
